Marvin Fong/The Plain DealerFor Alex Boone, tonight's Fiesta Bowl "is the final exam of final exams. This game means everything right now, because
[Texas defensive end Brian Orakpo] is a great player. And this will show people what I am or what he is."

Scottsdale, Ariz. -- Ohio State fans will be thrilled to learn that Brian Orakpo, the best defensive end in college football, has studied the Florida game. That's like teaching a Rottweiler how to chew through his leash.

The Gators' 2-year-old national championship destruction of Ohio State -- specifically the offense, and more specifically the offensive line -- occurred on the same field on which the Buckeyes meet Texas in tonight's Fiesta Bowl. In the repetitive highs and rare but public lows, in the expectations and constant observations, in the questions about how to evaluate this Ohio State era, left tackle Alex Boone exemplifies the conflicted views fans have of the Buckeyes. They can be clarified against the No. 3 team in the country, for good or for bad.

"I'm aware of that," the senior from Lakewood said, smiling when asked of his status as a lightning rod for the Buckeyes' fortunes. "My grandma reads all those message things and will call me crying or swearing. But if people are mad at me, I can't change that."

Actually, he can.

In his final college game, Boone faces the toughest opponent he could ask for, gladly.

"I'm getting lots of phone calls from people, like, if you have a great game this week, it'll kind of silence a lot of people," Boone said.

"A lot of people think the world of Orakpo, and they think he's everything. If you shut him down or force him to the other side, it'll say a lot about you.

"It's the perfect matchup. I told a lot of people I'd be excited to play Texas. I didn't think it would actually happen."

It has, and it's more than just an individual showdown between Boone and the winner of the Lombardi, Nagurski and Hendricks awards. It's the place where the Fiesta Bowl can change, because the Buckeyes must run the ball for their offense to work and to keep the high-powered Texas offense off the field.

"If they can control the ball and keep the clock running and we never see the ball, it's not going to matter," Texas coach Mack Brown said.

"That's a great defense against our offense."

And the Buckeyes can't run if they don't control an end known for his size, his speed and his discipline to the game plan.

"Everything he does is perfect," Boone said.

The line also has to keep quarterback Terrelle Pryor from getting rattled by a defensive line that leads the nation in sacks. Once Florida starting chasing Troy Smith two years ago, his Heisman was the last thing on people's minds.

"I was watching a lot of the Florida game to try to see some stuff they were doing to get to the quarterback," Orakpo said. "I was trying to see some tendencies that really helped me."

Orakpo zeroed in on the Penn State game from this season as well, when defensive end Aaron Maybin caused repeated problems. But Ohio State offensive coordinator Jim Bollman made it clear the Texas front four is more than just Orakpo, which is why some consider this best defensive line the Buckeyes have faced this season.

"The Penn State defensive line is good, the USC defensive line is good, so I don't know that these guys are clear cut way beyond them," Ohio State tight end Rory Nicol said.

Nicol said the Buckeyes might be helped by two changes in the plan from those earlier games. One is helping the tackles more, so a player like Maybin can't dominate the way he did in his matchup against right tackle Bryant Browning. The other is a commitment to the inside power running game and less of the zone-read runs that were used to stretch a defense when Pryor first took over the starting job.

"I think we got back toward the power-type running in the Illinois game and the Michigan game," Nicol said. "I think it's better to keep it up the middle."

So the plan might be better. And then it will come down to matchups. And maybe everyone, including Boone himself, will figure out what kind of player he is and what kind of season he really had. On one hand, he made first-team All-Big Ten and was a second-teamer on one All-American team. However, nearly every draft analyst believes Boone's stock fell in his return for his senior season.

But like Ohio State defensive end Vernon Gholston did by winning his showdown with Michigan left tackle Jake Long last season, helping Gholston leap into the No. 6 pick in the draft, one game against one great player can go a long way. And clear up a lot of chaos.

"Overall, I felt it was a good year for me, and everyone was like, your draft is slipping. Obviously, that doesn't matter to me right now, but I'm kind of confused as well," Boone said. "What could I have done better? Do I have to go out there and kill somebody? What do you want from me?"

What do Ohio State fans want? They want a win tonight. And they'll probably need Boone at his best against Orakpo to get it.

"This is the final exam of final exams," Boone said. "This game means everything right now, because he is a great player. And this will show people what I am or what he is."

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